A Time to Start
by velvet-sometimes
Summary: Kagome doesn't realize just how much her life is going to change when she falls further back in time than she anticipated. Art trade with Naomi. ON HIATUS
1. Pants

Disclaimer: Look, I don't own Inuyasha, if I did. That unmistakable sexual tension between Sesshoumaru and Kagome? It would have been acted upon. And it hasn't, so obviously, it still belongs to Rumiko Takahashi. oh yah, and on a side note, i'm not making a profit off of this.

Note: alright. The wonderful and awesome ItsyBitsySpider (on Dokuga) AKA The Sorrowful Vampress is my Beta. This is for my half of my art trade with Naomi. . . I'll be updating this sporadically AKA whenever Naomi feels like she's in an arting mood.

**PANTS**

She wasn't sure how it had happened, but as Kagome looked around in bewilderment at the trees surrounding her, she knew this was not the time she was supposed to be in.

This end of the well was supposed to be in a clearing. Not a forest.

When she pulled herself out of the well to look around, she snagged her pants on a large splinter and ripped a sizable hole in the right thigh, scratching her leg in the process. _Great, I'm bleeding in the middle of a forest with NO idea where I can find help if a demon attacks._ She cursed her luck as she looked around, not quite sure what to do. She bit down the wild surge of fear and tried to take in all the details she could to figure out _when_ she was. It wasn't a thick forest, but definitely more than the last time she was here.

Tentatively, she called out into trees, even though she knew she was foolish for it, as it would only serve to make her even more frightened. "Inuyasha? Sango?" When she got no reply, she called out again, "Miroku? Shippo? Is anyone there?"

She started to walk in the direction of where she knew the god tree was. Hoping that it would help her pinpoint what time she had landed in, but nothing looked familiar.

If she wanted to be truthful with herself, she couldn't find the tree at all. Which was strange in itself since it was always the largest tree in this area.

The longer she searched, the more she was sure it wasn't there. Which had her wondering just _how far_ _did the well send her back_?


	2. Game

Disclaimer: Look, I don't own Inuyasha, if I did. That unmistakable sexual tension between Sesshoumaru and Kagome? It would have been acted upon. And it hasn't, so obviously, it still belongs to Rumiko Takahashi. oh yah, and on a side note, i'm not making a profit off of this.

Note: alright. The wonderful and awesome ItsyBitsySpider (on Dokuga) AKA The Sorrowful Vampress is my Beta. And This is for my half of my art trade with Naomi. . . I'll be updating this sporadically AKA whenever Naomi feels like she's in an arting mood.

**GAME**

She wasn't sure when the awareness of her situation kicked in, but her skin prickled at the realization of being hunted. Immediately she knew that the scent of her blood was what drew whatever was out there to her.

She reached out with her Reiki to sense her surroundings, but quickly reined it back in. Claustrophobia set in as all the Youki surrounded her. The whole forest felt like it was choking her with the power of the Youki. It didn't belong to just one being. Demons with this much power were rare, even in Inuyasha's time. But now she was surrounded by tons of such beings.

When she heard a twig break, she didn't even register she was running until it was too late. She wasn't fast enough. Though her pursuer was no closer, he had also not fallen back, gaining on her, yet keeping his distance. Whoever, or whatever, was behind her was playing with her in some sort of horrible cat and mouse game of chase.

She could feel Youki pressing in on her at all points, yet she continued to run. She didn't stop even upon the realization that she was being herded. Hope she could escape kept her going.


	3. Mute

**Disclaimer**: Look, I don't own Inuyasha, if I did. That unmistakable sexual tension between Sesshoumaru and Kagome? It would have been acted upon. And it hasn't, so obviously, it still belongs to Rumiko Takahashi. oh yah, and on a side note, i'm not making a profit off of this.

**Note**: alright. The wonderful and awesome ItsyBitsySpider (on Dokuga) AKA The Sorrowful Vampress is my Beta. This is for my half of my art trade with Naomi. . . I'll be updating this sporadically AKA whenever Naomi feels like she's in an arting mood.

**MUTE**

When she broke through the trees into the clearing she saw them all. The demons she had been sensing around her in the forest. They were standing around the perimeter of the small meadow, each about 10 feet apart. But they weren't moving or coming at her, merely standing at attention.

In a brash move, she spun around quickly, pulling her bow from around her over her shoulder and an arrow from her quiver; drawing to face her pursuer. When she looked down the shaft of her arrow, the figure looking back at her was not what she was expecting.

He was lithe and tall, looking more like a poised dancer than the assassin she knew him to be. He had long, winding silver hair and golden eyes that that made her heart skip a beat. What pulled the startled gasp from her throat though, where the two magenta strips adorning each cheeks, and the sapphire moon crowning his brow.

He had claws raised to strike, but had yet to deliver the blow, choosing instead to observes the human that was so defiant of her end.

Standing behind him was a older looking man, with similar markings and the mokomoko she was so familiar with in the feudal era. She would have been a fool not to recognize him.

"Sesshoumaru?" She lowered her bow slowly, keeping the arrow tensed to fire, but pointing at the ground.

The only reply she received was an arched brow and a delicate sniff to try to identify her person. She looked at him in shock. Noticing the more boyish tilt to his mouth, and a distinctive lack of armor.

"It is you!" As she spoke, he lowered his claws into a less threatening pose, but continued to watch her quizzically. "I know we aren't on the best of terms but you have no idea how _relieved_ I am to see you. I know you prob-"

Her rambling words where cut off but the man behind him stepping forward. She didn't wait to see what he was going to do; she swung her arrow up to point at his chest. "Stay back."

The older man's brows shot up at her audacity and he let out a booming laugh. Clapping a hand down on Sesshomaru's shoulder. "The mortal knows you, eh boy? Here I believed you distained such activities." there was a smile on his face, and an insinuation in his voice.

His only reply as a soft 'hn' not distinguishable as a positive or a negative, and really if she hadn't seen his mouth move, she would have thought it was the wind. Vaguely, she wondered why he didn't out and out say he didn't know her.

The man watching his impassive face for a moment before shrugging. He reached toward her, fingers glowing green in a way she distinctly remembered from one of her first encounters with Sesshoumaru. "A trespasser is still a trespasser, regardless of association."

She fired.

He caught it between his fingers and she had such a feeling of déjà vu, that for a moment it was hard for her to distinguish between father, son, and the Sesshoumaru from her time. He let out a yelp of pain as his hand was engulfed in pink light.

When he ripped his hand back, the skin was mildly charred.

The moment they saw the purifying light, the demons who were standing at attention around them leapt forward to destroy the threat.

But then Sesshoumaru did something that no one expected; he grabbed her wrist and yanked her toward him. The wind was knocked out of her when she impacted with his hard chest.

His lowered his head to sit in the cradle of her shoulder, and she could feel him scenting her. After a moment he was still, before facing the people around them who had paused to watch what he would do. Though she couldn't see him, she could feel his lips raise in a soundless baring of his teeth at everyone around him.

"What in the world has gotten into you?" the older man demanded.

She was frozen when Sesshoumaru nuzzled her ear before whispering to her so quietly she was afraid she would miss something over the thundering of her heartbeat.

"Repeat my words, mortal." In reply she nodded dumbly.

She felt so strange as she recited his whispered words. She couldn't help but wonder why he didn't speak for himself. "This woman, though faintly, and with mild nuisances, carries my scent. From where I have met her I cannot tell, but I must honor the fact she smells of me and my poison."

The older man's brows shot up, this time more in shock than amusement. "Where do you know this girl?"

He stared to whisper in her ear again, and she felt like an echo. "That is not important. Only that she smells of me, which gives me prior claim. I cannot allow harm to befall her."

He sighed, running a hand through his hair and looking at the two of them in exasperation. "Really Sesshoumaru? So what do you propose we do? Bring a human back with us to the Shiro?"

She couldn't see his expression over her shoulder, but it made the man scowl. "Fine. _Fine_. But I will have my chance to question her strange behavior and appearance once we are home. We will figure out what happens to her then." He turned then, waving his hands in agitation and muttering about stubborn, foolhardy heirs.

The demons around them snapped to an unspoken command and followed after their lord.

Sesshoumaru released her from his vice like grip and stepped around her, moving forward. After a few steps. When she was too shocked to move, he turned to look at her with a brow arched.

He beckoned her forward with a clawed hand. And when she placed her own in his, she felt something significant about that small gesture.


	4. Tape

**Disclaimer**: Look, I don't own Inuyasha, if I did. That unmistakable sexual tension between Sesshoumaru and Kagome? It would have been acted upon. And it hasn't, so obviously, it still belongs to Rumiko Takahashi. oh yah, and on a side note, i'm not making a profit off of this.

**Note**: alright. The wonderful and awesome ItsyBitsySpider (on Dokuga) AKA The Sorrowful Vampress is my Beta. This is for my half of my art trade with Naomi. . . I'll be updating this sporadically AKA whenever Naomi feels like she's in an arting mood.

**TAPE**

His human was struggling to keep up with the fast pace of the demons around her while trying to stay as close to his side as she could. It would have been endearing, if he indeed knew who she was and why she smelled of his person. A puzzling question, but he soothed himself with the knowledge that once in the privacy of the Shiro, he could question her about it.

It was hard for her though, what with her earlier fatigue and cut across her leg, now bleeding more heavily from the use of the muscle. It distressed him, that his new pet was injured while surrounded by so many predators such as himself, but he wasn't exactly sure what to do about it; he knew nothing of humans besides the fact that they were fragile and had to be handled gently, less they break.

His musings where cut short by the lowly spoken words of a guard to his father. "She's bleeding like a stuck pig Milord, its drawing every demon in ten miles of us to her, it's all we can do to dispose of them before they get too close, and what with her slow pace, we can't merely outrun them."

The demon lord glanced back at her and Sesshomaru felt his hackles raise.

Quickly, he drew her to his side so that he could speak to her. "Woman, heal yourself. The smell of your blood puts you in more danger than you realize."

"Oh!" she spoke in surprise. "hold on a moment, I think I have something that should do the trick." She then stopped, sliding the large pack from her shoulders to rummage through it.

Sesshomaru waved his hand, signaling for the group to stop, and he watched as she sifted through a variety of strange objects he had no name for. He made a note to ask her about these things.

After a few moments, she pulled out a roll of… something… with a noise of triumph. It was silvery grey in color, and rolled like parchment.

She peeled a length of it from the rest and them bit it off with her teeth before slapping it over her cut. "There we go, all fixed."

His father spoke before anyone else had a chance too. "Little miko, what in the world is that?"

"My name is _Kagome_, for your information. And this," she gestured to the roll in her hands. "Is called Duct tape. It's used to fix things that are broken. Temporarily anyway."

"So you are now healed, little miko?" he asked, ignoring her pointed remark about her name, which caused his strange little human to scowl. He had to admit that her confidence made her intriguing, but he had to wonder if her attitude toward such a powerful being was not merely foolishness.

"Erm…. Not really. See, it's sort of acting like a tourniquet." She hedged. "It should work for a little while at least. How far away is where we are going?"

Sighing almost inaudibly, Sesshoumaru moved to sweep his human up into his arms, which caused her to let out a startled squeak of indignation. She almost screamed when they started to run, digging her blunt human nails into his haori and pressing her face into his chest. It made him almost want to smile that his human was seeking him for comfort, but still oddly disconcerting given he _still_ had no idea from where he knew her.

She had given no clue or hint as to their connection, but acted as if they where familiar.

He pondered humans and there peculiarities the entire run back to the Shiro.


	5. Sicko

**Disclaimer**: Look, I don't own Inuyasha, if I did. That unmistakable sexual tension between Sesshoumaru and Kagome? It would have been acted upon. And it hasn't, so obviously, it still belongs to Rumiko Takahashi. oh yah, and on a side note, i'm not making a profit off of this.

**Note**: alright. The wonderful and awesome Itsy is my Beta.

**Sicko**

During their run to the Shiro, Kagome had plenty of time to go from just accepting of her situation, to freaked out. Here she was, even further back in time than the feudal era, in the arms and _protection_ of Sesshoumaru: a demon who had attempted to kill her on quite a few occasions.

And the worst part was that she didn't even know why he did it. The only time in recent memory that she had gotten even remotely close enough to him to smell like him at all was when he had saved her and Rin from that sicko wielding Sou'unga. They didn't even touch, so she wasn't sure how it could have worked, except… she had touched Rin, who was in contact with him every day, so could she have gotten his scent that way?

And just to freak her out more, he kept snuffing at her neck, and making this rumbling sound in his chest like he was getting ready to eat her or something. Frankly, it was more than a little rude. She remembered his acid spit stuff. If she were in her time, she should have been able to call him on reckless endangerment for getting that mouth too close to her!

She stiffened when the mouth against her throat trailed up to her ear, dragging his lips across her skin before whispering directly into her ear so she could hear him. "Calm your fears, little miko. We are approaching the outer gates of my Shiro, and the scent of your fear, no matter how faint, makes you smell of prey."

"Oh yeah, like _that's_ going to help me calm down at all," she muttered with scathing sarcasm. "Oh hey, if your nervous about walking into a demon filled fortress with absolutely no way of protecting yourself _while_ bleeding like you've been stabbed, even a _tiny_ bit, everything inside is going to want to eat you. Not like your blood is going to make them hungry to begin with _at all_. Just thought you might want to know."

He let out a very audible snort against her neck, and his father's head swiveled around to stare at him in shock for the noise.

Kagome figured an actual snort, that regular people without super human senses could hear, was like his version of that eardrum shattering 'guffaw' that people do when they are surprised by something funny. Which was a startling picture in itself.

"I find your audacious nature rather endearing, little miko. Though, I would request restraint when addressing those who are your superiors, for, I doubt they will find your little outbursts as amusing as I do." As he spoke, she could feel the prickle of his fangs against the skin of her ear in soft warning.

And taking heed to that warming, she bit back her retort. She chose instead to close her eyes and try to compose herself. That's when the rumbling started back up. The more she listened to it, the less it sounded like 'I'm going to eat you' and the more it started to sound like faint purring that she had the suspicious thought was meant to calm her. In reality, it only made her think he was contemplating making her a snack.

She put those thoughts away when they crested the hill and she got her first view of the Western fortress. It was magnificent. Sprawling was the only word she could think of to describe its mass. It even contained a city within its walls in addition to the town living against its gate.

From this distance, she could even see the main palace, and the nine gates you had to go though to get to it.

She must have voiced her wonderment, because the dog general smiled, stopping to let her get a nice view. "Welcome to the heart of the Western lands, little miko. Now, I'm not at all concerned for your wellbeing, but take heed: If you intend to survive the night, I would suggest not straying far from your watchdog." His eyes focused on Sesshoumaru as he said those words. "The Western Fortress is not always friendly toward mortal pets. And especially not toward ones who have learned to use their _teeth_."

She bristled at being called an animal, like _she_ was the dog here, and the insult broke from her lips before she could stop it. "Better a pet that can _bite_ than an old dog who has _lost_ his teeth." She knew she was practically asking for a fight, but the look on his face made it worth it.

His brows shot up into his hairline at that, and Sesshomaru's arms tightened around her. But instead of reacting violently as expected, he let out a booming laugh and just continued down the hill, shaking his head and muttering in amused exasperation.

Before she could celebrate the fact that he hadn't killed her, she could feel the prickle of Sesshomaru's claws though the fabric of her jeans and could hear the hiss of his voice in her ear. "Disregarding my advice so soon little miko?"

"Urk… it just kind of slipped out?" At his impassive face, she muttered. "Not my fault he's insulting."

"He is the Lord of the west; he can be as insulting as he desires." She could hear the faintest trace of annoyance in his voice, and decided not to press seeing as he was her only real protection and she didn't want too lose it.

Really, she wanted to go off about the fact that just because he was a lord didn't give him right to treat others badly, but an irritated Sesshomaru wasn't something she wanted to deal with when she still didn't know what was going on and he was the only familiar face around.

He then spoke in her ear again. "You are to address my father."

She nodded, calling out to him. "Inu-no-Taisho!"

He spun quickly, approaching with a suspicious look on his face. "You, little miko, know far more than you let on. How does a human know that I am the Dog General? Your kind are not privy to the affairs of demons."

Before she could think up an excuse, Sesshomaru started to speak in her ear, forcing her to recite his words instead of her own.

"We are to be returning to the Shiro ahead of you on a manifestation of my Youki," she echoed, and Sesshoumaru merely continued through his father's glare and her stuttering. "You must take into account the little miko's clothing and scent, do not delude yourself into thinking that a lesser being would not find the scent appetizing."

The older Inu growled to show his disapproval. "You _will_ accompany us through town, heir. You are expected to make a regal entrance, not slink in through the backdoor like a child trying not to get caught with something he is not supposed to have."

"She needs tending, father. Would it not be foolish to parade her bleeding through the entirety of the fortress?" Kagome didn't think she would ever get used to Sesshomaru speaking through her like some sort of puppet, and it still frustrated her that she didn't know why he did it.

She couldn't see Sesshomaru's expression over her shoulder, but once again, the older Inu glared at them, as if trying to intimidate him into backing down, before waving his hand in irritation.

"You are far too spoiled for your own good. Take your pet and have her tended to. When I return I expect a _full_ explanation of just what in the world is going on here." He eyed the two of them for good measure as she felt a gathering of power around her. It was unsettling, and her reiki flared against it as she lurched forward to look Sesshoumaru in the eye.

She was met with a feral grin as he let his Youki lick against her. Again she flared against him in response.

And as they took off into the air, she had the strangest feeling that they where playing some demon form of footsie.**-**

**End Note: This is for my half of my art trade with Naomi. . . I'll be updating this sporadically AKA whenever Nao-chan feels like she's in an arting mood. :D**


	6. Orange

**Disclaimer: Look, I don't own Inuyasha, if I did. That unmistakable sexual tension between Sesshoumaru and Kagome? It would have been acted upon. And it hasn't, so obviously, it still belongs to Rumiko Takahashi. oh yah, and on a side note, i'm not making a profit off of this.**

**Note: Beta'd By the lovely R. M. Avalon  
**

**Orange**

They flew over fields and houses, rushing past so quickly that the world was a blur beneath their feet. And the Shiro in the distance that had looked so small it could be a toy, was rapidly growing in size. Transforming from a figure on the horizon, to a sprawling and intimidating fortress.

As she looked out at the world that was blurring past her, figures from below called out and waved up at them from their work in rice fields. But when she leaned forward to return the gesture, they shrank back and returned to their work.

"Huh. I wonder what is wrong with them."

"Silence mortal. Do not speak again until I permit you to." He commanded in a voice that carried far more than it needed to. She pulled away to look at him, baffled that he had spoken so loudly. it was still quiet, but she could actually hear tonal changes in his voice.

"Wait, you can talk like a normal person? And where do you get off ordering me like that?"

He quirked a brow at her, before pinning her with a stare that made her shrink back in his arms. "Do not make me repeat myself little miko. All will be explained in its due time."

Biting her tongue, She remained silent as they passed over the first of the gates, and noticed the people pointing and whispering. She couldn't see them well, as they were so far below them, but she could feel their power.

She felt sick when it dawned on her that almost every single person walking within the walls of the western fortress was a demon of some sort. A hundred pairs of eyes snapped up to hers with her sharp intake of breath at the revelation.

They could hear her every heartbeat, even from that distance. That's when she realized the reason for Sesshomaru's demand of silence; and she silently grasped the fabric of his kimono, digging her fingers.

He tightened his hold on her.

After a few more moments, they were touching down on an orange slate roof that belonged to one of the inner houses, one gate away from the main palace of the Shiro. The tiles where orange clay and clacked with the soft impact of Sesshoumaru's boots touching down upon them.

Looking down at them, she wondered how he could balance on the curved clay, as it was covered in moss and algae, but he walked down the side of the slanted roof as easily as solid ground.

From there he dropped down into a private garden attached to one of the rooms. And once he had touched down on the porch, he finally let her stand on her own.

She was awed as she took in the lush garden surrounding her. Filled with beautiful fountains and ponds and ancient stone statues that where covered in moss from age and neglect. The state of the staues puzzled her, since the rest of the garden was so well maintained. It was almost as if they were afraid to touch the stone guardians.

He quickly slid open one of the doors and ushered her inside, parting her from the lovely view, before following closely and closing it behind him with a very final sounding click.

"Now little miko, it is time for your explanation. I do not know you, yet you carry my scent." He moved close to her then, towering over her close enough to feel the rise and fall of her breath, lifting a lock of her hair to delicately sniff it. "And from the feel of it, this is not the first time that you have been in contact with me." He then gently grasped her wrist, turning it over to delicately trace claws over her pulse. "Deep in your skin, you carry traces of my poison. It is a scent that never leaves." He moved his lips close to her ear. "It's running through your veins and I want to know why."

She stepped back from him then, looking up at him with wary eyes. "How about a game? Question for a question?" It was strange; it was like this sort of personal space invasion was just part of his being. At first she thought his subtle caresses where some sort of attempt at seduction, but then she realized that for him, it just _was_. Another facet of his personality that was as normal as breathing. And it was unsettling.

She couldn't help but wonder what had caused the change in him between now, whenever now was, and the feudal era.

"Do not try my patience mortal." His words snapped her out of her musing, and brought another set of thoughts to the surface. "Miko you may be, you are still easily breakable. Now answer my question."

Sighing, she slowly sat down on one of the cushions beside the table. Taking time to smooth out both her thoughts and the fabric of her sweater.

She finally looked up at him and gestured to the seat next to her. "See, that's a bit hard to explain, so why don't we start on something simpler. What's with your using me like a puppet back there?"

He sighed almost inaudibly before sitting down beside her. "I am... selective… about whom I speak too." he hedged. "I do not like speaking in front of crowds, so it is not uncommon for me to speak though another."

"So if you're selectively mute, how can you be speaking to me normally?"

He gestured to the empty room around them. "Do you see anyone else beside the two of us?" amusement quirked the corner of his mouth, and it was surreal. Seeing Sesshoumaru with any emotion, however muted.

"Your strange clothes." it was more of a statement than a question, but answered anyway, fighting off a smirk.

"They are normal where I'm from."

He plucked at the end of her sweater, cocking his eyebrow and the rough cotton. "And where is that?"

She swatted at his claws and he nearly cracked a smile at her audacious attitude. She almost scowled when she realized he was teasing her. "A place called Tokyo."

"I have never heard of this Tokyo, you must be far from your homeland."

She laughed at that. "It's closer than you think."

His eyes flashed to hers in warning but she smiled, waving it off. "What where you doing by the bone eaters well, so far from your Shiro? Surely the west does not extend as far as that."

He bristled. "This is all the territory of the west. I was patrolling my lands with father."

He scowled for a minute at her before asking his next question. "What name do you go by, little miko. You seem to know mine, and that puts us on unequal footing."

She hedged at that, biting her lip. "Kagome..." she whispered, before breathing deeply to steady her voice. "I go by Kagome."

"Kagome. Ka-go-me."he played with her name, as if rolling it around to see if he liked it. "How… odd."

This time she did scowl. "You don't see me making fun of your name."

"The killing perfection is an accurate description of this Sesshoumaru's person." He defended, moving his hand down to let his claws tap lightly on the polished wood of the table before them.

She made a very unladylike snort at that. "Why did you save me?"

"I was curious. Why should I continue to do so?"

She shrugged. "Because I know something that you don't."

"Which is?"

"Why I smell like you."

"How _did_ you get the scent of my poison under your skin?" he moved closer to her again, trailing the tip of his nose down the side of her neck to sniff at her pulse point. No longer distracted by all the demons that had been around her, she could focus on the demon in front of her; and how distracting he was. "I can think of precious few ways you could have accomplished this…. And you think I would remember that."

The implication hung in the air between them as his lips traced the shell of her ear as he scented her hair. And she knew exactly the two scenarios he was implying. Having attempted to melt her, which he had, many years prior. Or…. Having slept with her. Which he most surely did not.

She smiled. "If I told you, then you wouldn't have any reason to keep me alive now would you?"

Before he could growl at her like she knew he wanted to, he raised a hand to silence her and turned to look at the door to the rest of the house behind them.

After a few moments, the door slid open to reveal a bowing figure of an older woman.

"My lord. I have come to prepare your human pet."

He arched a delicate eyebrow in Kagome's direction, and she asked. "Prepare me for what, exactly?"

"You have been summoned with his lordship to stand before the counsel. We are to bathe you and dress you so that the stink of human does not linger." She stated in a bored voice, which was so patronizing that Kagome wanted to hit something.

Her eyes shot back up to his in question and outrage, and he merely tipped his head in faint acknowledgement before nodding and dismissing her with the wave of his hand.

As she stood, Kagome felt the urge to curse at him, but knew it would do no good as most of her favorite curse words would mean anything to him anyway.

Kagome couldn't do anything besides just go with it as the strange demonesses pushed and prodded her. The Hallways, which they very nearly dragged her down, were ornate; the floors made of woods she had no name for, and scrolls- that in her time, probably where worth more than her life- hung on the walls. Frustratingly, they wouldn't allow her any time to just stop and look around, so the fantastically decorated halls were nothing more than blurs of paper doors and golden inlays. The most disconcerting part of it though, was she had no idea where she was or where she was going.

The women answered no questions, and offered no information, so she was hopelessly lost by the time they arrived at what she could only guess was a woman's bathhouse. And before she could voice her willingness to do it herself, they quickly stripped her of her clothes and plunked her down in the water.

Her cries of embarrassment fell on deaf ears as they grabbed at her. Some hands lathering, some rinsing. She was slightly disoriented as their voices called out to others with terms she didn't know, arguing over colors and numbers and so many things it made her head spin.

With all these woman fusing over her, she felt like a child's doll.

"This is not necessary!" she sputtered. "I took a bath this morning before leaving home!"

"You smell like sweat and human and Lady Natsuki wouldn't let you within the doors in your former… attire." She said mater-of-factly. The woman who spoke was older than the others, with a voice that was stern and booked no room for argument. It was easy to tell she was in charge.

Kagome bristled. "There is _nothing_ wrong with my clothes."

There where giggles from the women around her as they continued their furious scrubbing, and she tried not to scowl at them.

"You were dressed positively indecently." The stern woman behind her spoke again, before dumping a small basin of water over her head. Now, all Kagome could really see of the woman where her hands as they raked a comb through her tangled hair. They where old and spindly, with the light makings of age spots, but still strong in grip.

Kagome decided not to comment on that and asked instead, "Who is Lady Natsuki?"

The woman gave out a bark of laughter, and Kagome finally recognised her voice as that of the woman who had come to get her. "The Lady of the Western Lands you foolish child. Now be quiet and let me work."

So she did. Deciding that fighting was going to get her nowhere, she allowed them to push her this way and that, drying her skin and pulling her hair in all different directions as they shaped it.

And as they ushered her slightly shivering form into another room, her breathe caught.

She had seen jūnihitoe in museums, but never in person.

That was when everything around her once more exploded into a frenzy of movement as they yelled things at each other and passed around different brightly colored kimono to dress her with. She lost track of how many at the sixth layer they had forced her into.

One of the younger women asked about face paint, but it was quickly decided that there was no time.

Then she was being led down corridors again, far too quickly to get any idea of if she had come though this way the first time or not.

The worst part was the weight of the kimono she was being forced to walk in; Kagome could have sworn it weighed a ton and she kept tripping as she tried to keep up with the ladies.

Before she knew it, she was being pushed though double doors that clacked shut with finality behind her the moment she was clear.

All eyes turned toward her.

**End Note: This is for my half of my art trade with Naomi. . . I'll be updating this sporadically AKA whenever Nao-chan feels like she's in an arting mood. :D**

**Sorry this took so long to get up; I've had a lot of crap to do. =_= Namely Dentist's appointments and IRL responsibilities. I really hate having to be a responsible adult. What happened to being 10 yrs old and nothing mattered? You know what? I'm going to go to never land and become a lost girl so I don't have to deal with all this anymore.**

**I'll check in when I'm done fighting Captian Hook.**


	7. Cactus

**Cactus**

By the time the meeting with the Youki court and Sesshomaru's parents had ended, Kagome was really only sure of a few things:

1. Having you hair done up is pretty painful, and distracting enough that you might not put your slippers on correctly.

2. Slippers are aptly named, and they will slip of your feet at inopportune moments and try to trip you.

3. Fancy kimonos are heavy… and if you trip in one, its very, very, hard to right yourself in time. You will most likely fail.

4. When you do fall, it will most likely be on Sesshomaru.

5. But from your new vantage point you can deduce that he has a sculpted chest.

6. And his hair tastes like…hair. Not like in those romance novels where it smells and tastes of starlight or some other nonsense.

7. You can also deduce that His claws are very prickly.

8. Inupapa's temper is just as prickly.

9. Oh, and almost purifying Sesshomaru's mother isn't going to help your case at all. Accident or not.

10. But it does help in making that creepy guy in silver afraid of you.

11. Which, in hindsight, might be very, very bad.

**Note: So my allergies are acting up. I woke up this morning becouse I couldn't breath. I feel like I tryed to swallow steel wool, and my left eye is swollen and sore. :/ Blarg. I'm sitting curled up watching movies and looking fondly at my bottle of cold medicene and bag of Ricola's**.


	8. Hat

**Hat**

As Kagome quickly -or as quickly as one could in a heavy kimono- tried to make her escape, one clawed hand closed tightly around her wrist, spinning her around to face a very annoyed, very _beautiful_, dog demon who was baring delicately pointed teeth at her.

"How _dare_ a Miko enter my domain? Consider yourself blessed I have not decided to eat you for your impertinence."

Her eyes darted around for Sesshomaru, she _really_ didn't want to fight his mother, as that would probably send every demon in the castle after her. "I assure you it wasn't intentional, Lady Natsuki, I'm only trying to find my way back home. It was just luck that I happened to run into Sesshomaru-Sama."

The woman released her with a flick of her wrist, and used the same hand to flip her hair back over her shoulder before turning to glide down the hallway. She turned slightly once, to speak to Kagome over her shoulder before disappearing around a corner. "I would not call it luck, little human. You are in far greater danger than you even know; the moment you flared your Rieki in the thrown room, was the moment you signed your own death warrant."

**Note: Um... yah. I'm in a bit of a funk today, so I decided I needed to write something stupidly short, just to prove I still could. So here you go. Also, I have no Idea why I stuck with the prompt 'Hat' I didn't actually use it. Whatever. It works.**


End file.
